1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle, a driving apparatus and a control method of the vehicle and the driving apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
There has hitherto been proposed a vehicle that comprises an engine, a planetary gear mechanism (a power distribution and integration mechanism) whose carrier is connected to a crankshaft of the engine and whose ring gear is connected to a drive shaft coupled to a drive wheel, a first motor (motor MG1) connected to a sun gear of the power distribution and integration mechanism, and a second motor (motor MG2) connected to the drive shaft as a vehicle of this kind (refer to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-233799). In this vehicle, in the self-supporting operation of an engine at a vehicle speed below a prescribed vehicle speed, by the self-supporting operation of the engine at a prescribed self-supporting rotation speed Nhi, which is a relatively high rotation speed, the generation of vibrations and noise due to gear rattling and the like is suppressed compared to the case of the self-supporting operation of the engine at a low rotation speed. In the self-supporting operation of an engine at a vehicle speed of not less than a prescribed vehicle speed, the fuel consumption of the vehicle is improved by the self-supporting operation of the engine at a prescribed rotation speed Nlo, which is a relatively low rotation speed.